Mannesmann Tower

The Mannesmann Tower stands on the exhibition grounds in Vienna. It was built in 1955 as a gift from Mannesmann AG to the Vienna Trade Fair. The tower reached 150 metres and had a triangular steel lattice structure. Josef Fröhlich directed its construction using seamless tubular steel. The tower’s design echoed earlier Mannesmann towers in Düsseldorf and São Paulo. The tower symbolised Mannesmann’s expertise in steel tube production. Its seamless tubes, first developed in 1885, became widely known as Mannesmann tubes. At night, neon lights illuminated the structure, and a corner junction at its base showed how the pipes joined. The tower also hosted radio services for trade fair communications and emergency medical use. Visitors found a striking steel framework rising above the exhibition grounds. The tower’s height allowed it to rise just above nearby factory chimneys. Plans for a meteorological measuring point were considered but never fully realised. After decades of service, the tower was demolished in 1987, leaving only its memory in Vienna’s architectural history.